Scarves or mufflers are known which are useful for both decorative and utilitarian purposes. Generally, a scarf is made from an elongated piece of fabric which is of a length substantially longer than the circumference of a wearer's neck and a width longer than the vertical extent of the neck so that in use it may be wrapped at least once around the neck and knotted in place. As a result, the neck is protected from exposure to inclement weather.
Decorative scarves have the same general construction as utilitarian scarves, but they are generally made from thinner or lighter material. Consequently, such decorative scarves, while they adequately fulfill a wide variety of esthetic needs, do not provide much protection against the elements. Moreover, most known scarves, whether they are made to provide decorative and/or utilitarian needs, usually have an elongated body substantially longer than a wearer's neck circumference. Thus, they have dangling ends which can pose a danger to the health and safety of a wearer, especially if the wearer is near or operating equipment or machinery. Furthermore, the width of a conventional scarf often results in uneven longitudinal stretching of the material when the scarf is wrapped and tied about the neck since the neck possesses a diversely curved surface. Thus, there exists a need for a scarf which does not exhibit such disadvantages.
While U.S. Pat. No. 4,654,897 to Rosaen discloses a scarf which in some respect overcomes the above-mentioned disadvantages, the scarf disclosed there in and or itself exhibits certain drawbacks. For example, it is made of fabric and provided with Velcro fastening means which may be relatively separated when in use and also has a body made of fabric which may have limited qualities in provided protection against the elements.
There exists, therefore, the need for a scarf of still better properties with respect to protection against the elements as well as fastening means which are even less likely to become undone in use. The present invention provides a scarf which fulfills such a need.